PaulSimon (2022-2023)

Now that the cycle is basically over, I'm putting up my real numbers.

In addition to my BA, I also have a Master's in Criminology from UPenn. My grad school GPA is just below a 4.0.

Worked full time the year I applied doing education research and program analysis.

For reference:

*Sent* is the day I submitted the app through LSDAS
*Received* is the day the LSDAS said that a paper copy of my app was printed for the school
*Complete* is the day I was informed the school had all of the pieces of my application

9/30/08: I LOVE IT. I love law school, I love NYC, and I especially love Columbia. My professors are incredible and I feel intellectually and emotionally satisfied pretty much every day. This was the right choice.

For those applying this year, feel free to email/PM me if you have any questions...

4/30/08: That's it. Columbia. I am REALLY excited to be living in NYC. If you live in the D.C. area, give me your email address if you're interested in going to a few summer happy hours!

Deciding between Penn and Columbia was the second most difficult decision I've ever had to make (the first one was deciding whether to go to law school two years ago or whether to reapply). I loved Penn, adored Philly, and Dean Post was spectacular. Ultimately, it came down to my desire to live in NYC, the negligible difference in cost between the two, and the fact that I truly felt I'd be happy at either school.

The best two pieces of advice I got in making this decision, which really does come down to a gut one, were:

* After you decide, take a day to just live with that decision before sending in the deposit. If you feel sad or regretful, then go to the other school.
* Flip a coin and call it in the air. If after the coin comes down, you want to flip it again, there's your decision.

While I didn't flip a coin, I did let the Columbia decision percolate for a day, and I'm sure it's the right one.

4/29/08: Gaaaah...must...make...decision...

Almost put down a deposit deadline today, but, at my mother's suggestion, I decided to sleep on the decision for one more night.

At least I've joined the illustrious group of people who have been #1 on LSN...

4/25: Waitlisted at HLS. Pretty excited, actually. I suspect this is a terminal waitlist (i.e., I'm not getting offa that thing), but it's still a nice ego-booster. There's a possibility I'd go there over CLS (although the idea of changing plans abruptly in the middle of the summer makes me a bit sick), so I'm going to send them some additional materials in the next few weeks.

4/23: It KILLS me to say goodbye to Northwestern. Their admissions staff are among the nicest, most patient, down-to-earth people I have interacted with this cycle. I cannot say enough good things about that school. I wish I could have triple-enrolled (Penn, NU, CLS).

And then there were two...

4/4/08:
Sorry for the long time without an update!

Financial aid stuff is starting to come in...started with a VERY generous 90k (over three years) from NU. Penn didn't give me anything initially, but after hearing back from NU I asked them to reconsider since I just can't justify such a gigantic difference in cost. I was really excited to hear back from them about my improved offer.

Still waiting to hear back from CLS on $$ stuff.

So far, I've visited Penn and Columbia and I loved them both. Was really impressed with the criminal law program at Penn as well as the variety of student projects. Adored the CLS housing, and was surprised to see so many relaxed, happy students (on top of all the great academic stuff that we all already know).

Still trying to figure out whether it's feasible to visit Northwestern. I was very disappointed not to receive any aid at all from GULC and GW, so I will be withdrawing. Pretty sure I'd take my current options over those two, even with $$.

It's going to be a tough decision...

3/25/08: Have I told you lately how much I love Northwestern, Penn, and Columbia? Because I do. A lot.

I suspect I've narrowed it down to these three, but despite my sympathy for those waiting on GW and GULC, am not quite ready to withdraw from anywhere yet. Part of me still hopes that maybe my financial aid offers from these schools got lost in the mail...

3/24/08: Got my financial aid award from Penn - $0! "But you can take out loans..." In the wake of 90K from Northwestern, this was very disappointing. I'm going to the Penn ASW this weekend, and I might let them know about Northwestern's offer afterwards.

2/29/08: WL at UMich. i liked this part: "Receiving this email means that you are someone whom we would be glad to have in our entering class, but to whom we cannot extend an offer at this time because of the risk that our class will be overenrolled." i thought it was a nice email. however, i doubt I would go there over UPenn and CLS. I threw in an application in the middle of my January panic before I'd heard from either of those schools. so no biggie.

2/26/08: Happy birthday to me!!! It's been a good year :)

2/19/08: I talked to my mom on the phone today after spending a few days out of town, and one of the first things she said to me was, "Your LSN is up to 32,000 views!"
---> 2/27: Mom: "Don't quote me in your LSN profile."

2/11/08: Call from the 'rents - Boalt rejection was sent to my permanent address. The chances that I will have to decide whether to move to California are now about 9%, according to Chiashu. (for those curious - I gave Boalt my standard PS, not an extended four-pager)

2/8/08: Yep. The winning streak ends today.

2/8/08: I fully expect that a rejection from Yale is sitting in my mailbox as I type.

2/8/08: Email from Harvard - it's been a few months and they haven't come to a decision yet, but they'll let me know eventually. It really didn't SOUND like a deferral...it sounded more like a just-keeping-you-posted thing...but I guess a deferral is what it effectively amounts to; and in any case, that's what everyone else is calling it, so I will mark it down as such for simplicity's sake. It's completely expected and I feel fine about it. It reminds me of that line from Knocked Up: "She's entertaining the idea of liking you." Except she=Harvard. Take your time.

1/31/08: Well, it's the end of January and I'm feeling pretty great. I'm still hoping to hear some good news from my remaining schools, but at least the waiting is much less agonizing. Financial aid/grants are going to be a BIG consideration for me, so I guess those options will start arrive in the next few months...

Hear that, Adcomms trolling my page? I can be bought! :o)

1/26/08: What? I think there's been some kind of LSN miscount...my view count went up by almost TWO THOUSAND overnight? As much as I would like to believe I am that popular...

1/25/08: IN AT NORTHWESTERN!!!! This is HUGE for me...I've been pining for them since November!! I wasn't expecting anything from them until after 6pm (not today, but any day) because that seems to be when they update things...but sure enough I got this really, really beautiful email from an adcomm saying that my status checker would change at 6pm and that I'd been accepted. I could not believe it. She wrote a whole paragraph about how much she loved my PS, which eases absolutely every single fear and insecurity that I had about it. I am so grateful right now....

...Three acceptances in three days?! WTF!!

1/24/08: Got home from the GULC ASW only to find a nice big CLS acceptance in my mailbox!!! Dated 1/23...I live within a few hours of NYC. Wow, what a way to end a no-news streak!!!!!

1/23/07: OMG I'M IN AT UPENN!!!!! Phone call from the dean today around 3pm. I'm beyond thrilled...It had been a while since I'd heard from anybody, and it seemed like everybody else was hearing SOME news from Penn. They are definitely one of my top choices. Ahhh!!!!! I am SO GLAD I retook the LSAT and reapplied!!!!!!

1/22/07: I had a dream that I got a really weird letter from Harvard that seemed like a rejection, but just had a lot of quotes from HLS students on it. Today, I get an email about a status checker. Coincidence or ESP? Is it too late to send out an addendum?

1/20/08:
Dear adcomms trolling my page,
I haven't heard from any of you for almost a month! Where have you all been? I'm waiting patiently...although maybe you should know that I will have VERY fond feelings for the next school that gives me good news....if there IS a next school to give me good news....

1/15/08: Submitted my last dual-degree app today!!! DONE!!

1/15/08: Email from Michigan today that they received my application. I assume this means that they got my letter with the fee waiver and certification statement, since they just requested my LSDAS report today. Time from mailbox to processed in their office was six days (four workdays). Not bad!

1/14/08: I had a nightmare over the weekend that I was deferred at NU. Whhhhhy didn't I write the Why NU essay???

1/8/08: Decided to apply to UMich after all. The only reason I hadn't was because I wasn't sure about Ann Arbor, but I keep hearing great things so I figure I'll give it a shot. I emailed the office of admissions with my background and interest in UMich and received a merit-based fee waiver.

1/8/08: Yesterday's NU holds have made me VERY nervous.

1/4/08: Doing okay, psychologically speaking. Between this, my job, and relationship issues, waiting on law schools is actually the least stressful aspect of my life right now. RED FLAG RED FLAG RED FLAG. I think I'll start to get antsy after next Friday if I still haven't heard from NU (week #8). I'm hoping to kick out the last of my grad (dual degree) apps this weekend.

12/28/07: Ohh, also, today marks week #6 of waiting for a decision at NU. My status checker says I'll probably hear within 6-8 weeks. The countdown begins...

12/28/07: In at GW today via email (8:33am)!!!!! YAYYYYY!!! Finally, my lloooooonnnng no-news streak has come to a temporary end. I love GW, and if it comes down to the two DC schools, it will be a close race between them and GULC.

Incidentally, GW was one of the schools I was admitted to in my first cycle (05-06). I ended up withdrawing with a letter explaining my reasons for not attending law school (see the first entry in my "additional info" section). Apparently, they did not hold this against me this cycle (thank goodness)!

12/19/07: I wonder what the chances are that I made some kind of horrific mistake on all of my applications? Perhaps my DS was monumentally offensive to all involved?

Le sigh. The waiting continues.

12/17/07: I'm dyyyyyyyiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnnngggggggg...

12/14/07: JUST got the "complete" postcard from GW last night. I'm so hard-up for ANY new news or information from these schools that I feel the need to post about this. In any case, I love GW...hoping they won't actually hold it against me that I didn't go there two years ago.

12/13/07: Well, NYU did start letting people know on Friday (not including those alumni kids...). I'm moving my prediction for Penn back until next week (12/21). Same for NW.

12/3/07: Prediction: NYU, CLS, and UPenn are going to start letting people know this Friday. If only...
**twiddles thumbs**

11/28/07: First acceptance - Georgetown! I never got an email from them about going complete or them receiving my application - just an acceptance out of nowhere. They rejected me twice before - once when I applied for undergrad, and then two years ago when I applied for law school - so I guess third time was a charm.
PS: I live within a few hours of D.C.. Letter was dated 11/26, postmarked 11/27.

11/20/07: Accepted to Florida Coastal without an application, purely on the basis of numbers. I was also offered a three-year scholarship. Very generous, but I will not be attending.

"We Got Yo App" Emails:
11/16/07 - NW
11/14/07 - Stanford
11/13/07 - NYU
11/10/07 - YLS
11/06/07 - HLS
11/06/07 - UPenn

11/13/07
Interview with NW alumni. Very pleasant.

11/05/07
So, I finally got around to submitting all of my applications. This is about a month and a half later than I hoped to get everything in, but we'll just have to see how things go from here. I would be thrilled to go to any of these schools.

Good luck to everyone this cycle!

PS: Now that I'm out in the real world, I'm ready to get back to school! Will probably matriculate in Fall 2008, not 2009.

12/21/06
Just got my new LSAT!!! Feel MUCH better about this than last year's test. Now I just gotta rock my grad school GPA and get my applications in SUPER early next cycle.

For those who didn't do well or are thinking about retaking - these things work out. I thought my world ended last year (I realized at the time I was being melodramatic), but whatever path you end up taking, it will turn out just fine.

12/07/06:
I'm taking even MORE time than I thought I would - I'm going to apply to law school in 2007, but hopefully I'll defer for a year after getting in, and eventually go in 2009. I'm hoping to work in the "real world" next year, and then do some independent research on a project of personal interest in 2008.

I got nervous about my Sept. 06 score, cancelled, and retook in December. I'm waiting on that score now.

05/2006:
I was not sure about any of the three choices I had this time around, so I decided to withdraw from all of them and try again in 2007!

In the meantime, I am getting an M.S. in Criminology from UPenn. It's a one-year program. After I finish, I will work for a year while I reapply to law school. I'll be going in 2008.

I wrote really nice withdrawal letters explaining all of this and mailed them 4/13/06. Both GW and Cornell told me they wouldn't hold it against me if I withdrew/reapplied, and they both suggested writing a letter. GW told me that I would be an entirely different (more qualified) candidate with a master's degree--for those thinking about taking this route.

My LSAT score definitely screwed me, so I'm retaking it in October 2006. Wish me luck! I'm taking a prep course over the summer, so if anyone has any recommendations, let me know!

Some people have told me that it's a bad idea to take time off and reapply, which I can understand. I may very well end up at Cornell or GW (if they let me back in), but I will be much happier with that choice after going through all this again.